Skip to main content

Advertisement

SpringerLink
Log in

Weight changes after adjuvant treatment in Korean women with early breast cancer

  • Epidemiology
  • Published:
Breast Cancer Research and Treatment Aims and scope Submit manuscript

Abstract

Background Weight gain is a common problem in breast cancer patients and is reported to be associated with poorer survival. However, most data are limited to Western women. We evaluated weight changes after adjuvant treatment in Korean women with early breast cancer. Methods The authors reviewed the records of 260 patients with stage I–III breast cancer treated between June 2003 and February 2006. Body weight, body mass index (BMI) and menopausal status at baseline and after 3, 6, 12 and 24 months of adjuvant treatment were reviewed. Results Mean patient age was 47.0 years and 61.1% of women were premenopausal. Among them, 195 patients (75.8%) received chemotherapy and 186 (71.5%) received hormonal therapy. Mean baseline weight was 57.5 ± 9.8 kg and mean BMI was 23.5 ± 1.6 kg/m2 (22.8 ± 3.0 vs. 24.7 ± 3.2 kg/m2 for pre- vs. post-menopausal women, P = 0.286). Mean weight changes were; 0.30 kg at 3 months (P = 0.019); 0.16 kg at 6 months (P = 0.367); −0.34 kg at 1 year (P = 0.082); −0.40 kg at 2 years (P = 0.097). Twenty-three patients (10.4%) gained more than 5% of baseline body weight at 1 year, but no clinical variable was found to be associated with these weight gains. Conclusion This study shows that Korean women with early breast cancer do not gain weight after adjuvant treatment. Further studies are needed to determine differences between Asian and Western women in terms of weight changes and prognosis in early breast cancer.

This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access.

Access this article

Log in via an institution

Price excludes VAT (USA)
Tax calculation will be finalised during checkout.

Instant access to the full article PDF.

Institutional subscriptions

Fig. 1

Similar content being viewed by others

References

  1. Goodwin PJ (2001) Weight gain in early-stage breast cancer: where do we go from here? J Clin Oncol 19(9):2367–2369

    PubMed  CAS  Google Scholar 

  2. Levine EG, Raczynski JM, Carpenter JT (1991) Weight gain with breast cancer adjuvant treatment. Cancer 67(7):1954–1959

    Article  PubMed  CAS  Google Scholar 

  3. Goodwin PJ, Ennis M, Pritchard KI, McCready D, Koo J, Sidlofsky S, Trudeau M, Hood N, Redwood S (1999) Adjuvant treatment and onset of menopause predict weight gain after breast cancer diagnosis. J Clin Oncol 17(1):120–129

    PubMed  CAS  Google Scholar 

  4. Demark-Wahnefried W, Peterson BL, Winter EP, Marks L, Aziz N, Marcom PK, Blackwell K, Rimer BK (2001) Changes in weight, body composition, and factors influencing energy balance among premenopausal breast cancer patients receiving adjuvant chemotherapy. J Clin Oncol 19(9):2381–2389

    PubMed  CAS  Google Scholar 

  5. Demark- Wahnefried W, Rimer BK, Winer EP (1997) Weight gain in women diagnosed with breast cancer. J Am Diet Assoc 97(5):519–526

    Article  PubMed  CAS  Google Scholar 

  6. Heasman KZ, Sutherland HJ, Campbell JA, Elhakim T, Boyd NF (1985) Weight gain during adjuvant chemotherapy for breast cancer. Breast Cancer Res Treat 5(2):195–200

    Article  PubMed  CAS  Google Scholar 

  7. Aslani A, Smith RC, Allen BJ, Pavlakis N, Levi JA (1999) Changes in body composition during breast cancer chemotherapy with the CMF-regimen. Breast Cancer Res Treat 57(3):285–290

    Article  PubMed  CAS  Google Scholar 

  8. Irwin ML, McTiernan A, Baumgartner RN, Baumgartner KB, Bernstein L, Gilliland FD, Ballard-Barbash R (2005) Changes in body fat and weight after a breast cancer diagnosis: influence of demographic, prognostic, and lifestyle factors. J Clin Oncol 23(4):774–782

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  9. Makari-Judson G, Judson CH, Mertens WC (2007) Longitudinal patterns of weight gain after breast cancer diagnosis: observations beyond the first year. Breast J 13(3):258–265

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  10. Chlebowski RT, Weiner JM, Reynolds R, Luce J, Bulcavage L, Bateman JR (1986) Long-term survival following relapse after 5-FU but not CMF adjuvant breast cancer therapy. Breast Cancer Res Treat 7(1):23–30

    Article  PubMed  CAS  Google Scholar 

  11. Camoriano JK, Loprinzi CL, Ingle JN, Therneau TM, Krook JE, Veeder MH (1990) Weight change in women treated with adjuvant therapy or observed following mastectomy for node-positive breast cancer. J Clin Oncol 8(8):1327–1334

    PubMed  CAS  Google Scholar 

  12. Loi S, Milne RL, Friedlander ML, McCredie MR, Giles GG, Hopper JL, Phillips KA (2005) Obesity and outcomes in premenopausal and postmenopausal breast cancer. Cancer Epidemiol Biomarkers Prev 14(7):1686–1691

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  13. Carmichael AR (2006) Obesity as a risk factor for development and poor prognosis of breast cancer. BJOG 113(10):1160–1166

    Article  PubMed  CAS  Google Scholar 

  14. Kroenke CH, Chen WY, Rosner B, Holmes MD (2005) Weight, weight gain, and survival after breast cancer diagnosis. J Clin Oncol 23(7):1370–1378

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  15. Knobf MT (1990) Symptoms and rehabilitation needs of patients with early breast cancer during primary therapy. Cancer 66(6 Suppl):1392–1401

    Article  PubMed  CAS  Google Scholar 

  16. Brown J, Byers T, Thompson K, Eldridge B, Doyle C, Williams AM, American Cancer Society Workgroup on Nutrition, Physical Activity for Cancer Survivors (2001) Nutrition during and after cancer treatment: a guide for informed choices by cancer survivors. CA Cancer J Clin 51(3):153–187

    Article  PubMed  CAS  Google Scholar 

  17. Copeland T, Grosvenor M, Mitchell DC, Smiciklas-Wright H, Marsoobian V, Blackburn G, Winters B (2000) Designing a quality assurance system for dietary data in a multicenter clinical trial: Women’s Intervention Nutrition Study. J Am Diet Assoc 100(10):1186–1190

    Article  PubMed  CAS  Google Scholar 

  18. Ahn SH, Korean Breast Cancer Society (2004) Clinical characteristics of breast cancer patients in Korea in 2000. Arch Surg 139(1):27–30

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  19. World Heath Organization (2000) Obesity: preventing and managing the global endemic. Report of a WHO Consultation. WHO Technical Report Series 894(3), i-253. WHO, Geneva

  20. Choi SH, Ahn CW, Cha BS, Chung YS, Lee KW, Lee HC, Huh KB, Kim DJ (2005) The prevalence of the metabolic syndrome in Korean adults: comparison of WHO and NCEP criteria. Yonsei Med J 46(2):198–205

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  21. World Health Organization, International Association for the Study of Obesity, International Obesity Task Force (2000) The Asia-Pacific Perspective: redefining Obesity and its Treatment. Health Communications Australia Pty Ltd, Melbourne, Australia

    Google Scholar 

  22. Deurenberg-Yap M, Chew SK, Deurenberg P (2002) Elevated body fat percentage and cardiovascular risks at low body mass index levels among Singaporean Chinese, Malays and Indians. Obes Rev 3(3):209–215

    Article  PubMed  CAS  Google Scholar 

  23. Currici S, Hartriyanti Y, Hautvast JG, Deurenberg P (1998) Relationship between body fat and body mass index: differences between Indonesians and Dutch Caucasians. Eur J Clin Nutr 52(11):779–783

    Article  Google Scholar 

  24. Wang J, Thornton JC, Russell M, Burastero S, Heymsfield S, Pierson RN Jr (1994) Asians have lower body mass index (BMI) but higher percent body fat than do whites: comparisons of anthropometric measurements. Am J Clin Nutr 60(1):23–28

    PubMed  CAS  Google Scholar 

  25. Expert Panel on Detection, Evaluation, Treatment of High Blood Cholesterol in Adults (2001) Executive summary of the third report of the National Cholesterol Education Program (NCEP) expert panel on detection, evaluation, and treatment of high blood cholesterol in adults (adults treatment panel III). JAMA 285(19):2486–2497

    Article  Google Scholar 

  26. Ball K, Brown W, Crawford D (2002) Who does not gain weight? Prevalence and predictors of weight maintenance in young women. Int J Obes Relat Metab Disord 26(12):1570–1578

    Article  PubMed  CAS  Google Scholar 

  27. Saquib N, Flatt SW, Natarajan L, Thomson CA, Bardwell WA, Caan B, Rock CL, Pierce JP (2007) Weight gain and recovery of pre-cancer weight after breast cancer treatments: evidence from the women’s healthy eating and living (WHEL) study. Breast Cancer Res Treat 105(2):177–186

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  28. Freedman RJ, Aziz N, Albanes D, Hartman T, Danforth D, Hill S, Sebring N, Reynolds JC, Yanovski JA (2004) Weight and body composition changes during and after adjuvant chemotherapy in women with breast cancer. J Clin Endocrinol Metab 89(5):2248–2253

    Article  PubMed  CAS  Google Scholar 

  29. Demark-Wahnefried W, Hars V, Conaway MR, Havlin K, Rimer BK, McElveen G, Winer EP (1997) Reduced rates of metabolism and decreased physical activity in breast cancer patients receiving adjuvant chemotherapy. Am J Clin Nutr 65(5):1495–1501

    PubMed  CAS  Google Scholar 

  30. Kutynec CL, McCargar L, Barr SI, Hislop TG (1999) Energy balance in women with breast cancer during adjuvant treatment. J Am Diet Assoc 99(10):1222–1227

    Article  PubMed  CAS  Google Scholar 

  31. Goodwin PJ, Panzarella T, Boyd NF (1988) Weight gain in women with localized breast cancer—a descriptive study. Breast Cancer Res Treat 11(1):59–66

    Article  PubMed  CAS  Google Scholar 

  32. Lankester KJ, Phillips JE, Lawton PA (2002) Weight gain during adjuvant and neoadjuvant chemotherapy for breast cancer: an audit of 100 women receiving FEC or CMF chemotherapy. Clin Oncol (R Coll Radiol) 14(1):64–67

    CAS  Google Scholar 

  33. Irwin ML, Crumley D, McTiernan A, Bernstein L, Baumgartner R, Gilliland FD, Kriska A, Ballard-Barbash R (2003) Physical activity levels before and after a diagnosis of breast carcinoma: the Health, Eating, Activity, and Lifestyle (HEAL) study. Cancer 97(7):1746–1757

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

Download references

Acknowledgements

This study was supported in part by a grant from the Korean Health 21 R&D Project, Ministry of Heath & Welfare, Republic of Korea (0412-CR01–0704-0001).

Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Internal Medicine, Seoul National University College of Medicine, Seoul National University Bundang Hospital, 300 Gumi-dong, Bundang-gu, Seongnam, Gyeonggi, 463-707, Korea

    Hye-Suk Han, Keun-Wook Lee, Jee Hyun Kim, Soo-Mee Bang & Jong Seok Lee

  2. Department of Internal Medicine, Seoul National University College of Medicine, Seoul National University Hospital, Seoul, Korea

    Do-Youn Oh & Seock-Ah Im

  3. Department of Surgery, Seoul National University College of Medicine, Seoul National University Bundang Hospital, Seongnam, Gyeonggi, Korea

    Sung-Won Kim

  4. Department of Radiation Oncology, Seoul National University College of Medicine, Seoul National University Bundang Hospital, Seongnam, Gyeonggi, Korea

    In-Ah Kim

Authors
  1. Hye-Suk Han
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  2. Keun-Wook Lee
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  3. Jee Hyun Kim
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  4. Sung-Won Kim
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  5. In-Ah Kim
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  6. Do-Youn Oh
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  7. Seock-Ah Im
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  8. Soo-Mee Bang
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  9. Jong Seok Lee
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

Corresponding author

Correspondence to Jee Hyun Kim.

Rights and permissions

Reprints and permissions

About this article

Cite this article

Han, HS., Lee, KW., Kim, J.H. et al. Weight changes after adjuvant treatment in Korean women with early breast cancer. Breast Cancer Res Treat 114, 147–153 (2009). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10549-008-9984-6

Download citation

  • Received:

  • Accepted:

  • Published:

  • Issue Date:

  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10549-008-9984-6

Keywords

Search

Navigation